Photo collage by Jennifer Diaz, MA in Communication from UIC, 2007.

People

People are the most important aspect of the Communication Department. Students, staff, and faculty have as their first mission the creation of intellectual community. We gather at informal, impromptu lunches in the department Conference Room (BSB 1140A), as well as in monthly meetings and brown-bag colloquia, where students sit at the table and ask the first questions of speakers, who include department members as well as guests. The honeycomb-like spaces of BSB provide a setting for conversation, and department facilities encourage interaction and respect. As one student said, the main Seminar Room “makes me feel important.” Overheard in a department search committee meeting: “We're looking for cool, fun people.” Staff members have a reputation for generosity and drop-everything service. The Faculty & Staff pages, as well as the Student Profiles page, invite visitors to get to know the life of the Department.